Writing Within Sociology: A Guide for Undergraduates

Writing Within Sociology: A Guide for Undergraduates

Department of Sociology Oregon State University

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii 1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2. Writing that Matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3. Tips on Writing Theory and Content Papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 4. Overview for Writing a Quantitative Research Paper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

4.1 Writing Quantitative Research Papers: The Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

4.2 Writing Quantitative Research Papers: The Literature Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

4.3 Writing Quantitative Research Papers: The Methods Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

4.4 Writing Quantitative Research Papers: Presenting Quantitative Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

4.5 Writing Quantitative Research Papers: Discussions and Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

5. Literature Reviews for Applied Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 6. What's Really Happening When I Write a Literature Review? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 7. Some Guidelines for Writing Book Reviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 8. The Internship Journal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

9. Writing a Case Study: An Exercise from Juvenile Delinquency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 10. Qualitative Writing I: Ethnographic Interviewing and Story-Telling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 11. Qualitative Writing II: Keeping Your Data and Your Writing Organized . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 12. Citing Sources: When and How . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 13. Research and Resources: Strategies for Finding & Using Library Resources . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Appendices

Appendix A Important Journals by Sociological Subject Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Appendix B Word Use & Misuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

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Acknowledgments

This writing guide is the product of many months of thinking and discussion about the range of skills and techniques that are essential for good writing within sociology. It draws on the expertise of the members of the Department of Sociology at Oregon State University: Rebecca Warner, Chair; Flaxen Conway, Sheila Cordray, Lori Cramer, Mark Edwards, Sally Gallagher, Lloyd Klemke, Charles Langford, Denise Lach, Rich Mitchell, Dwaine Plaza, and Gary Tiedeman.

While each of us has contributed his or her insights and tips for writing, this handbook would not have been possible without the creative imagination and persistent efforts of Mark Edwards and Dwaine Plaza. Not only did Mark and Dwaine originate the idea for this handbook, but also they were gently persuasive and persistent in coordinating the participation and contributions of other faculty (something that others have likened to trying to herd cats). We are all very grateful for their efforts, because they have led to a useful reference for our students. And in doing so, have provided the faculty with a valuable opportunity to think and write about the craft that is central to our profession.

Not only were Professors Edwards and Plaza responsible for originating and coordinating this handbook, but also they were responsible for writing the grant proposal that supported its development. We would like to acknowledge Vicki Collins and the Writing Intensive Curriculum Program for the grant funding which allowed us to "retreat" a number of times for collective brainstorming and planning.

Writing sociologically is a challenge for all of us. It is a skill we practice and refine throughout our careers. Writing about writing sociologically has likewise been a challenge, but one that we hope will provide useful information for undergraduates: how to begin, refine and polish good writing, as well as how to engage in good sociological thinking.

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Chapter One

Introduction1

Good sociological thinking is a continuous challenge for everyone -- from students in Introductory Sociology to emeritus professors of sociology. Experience offers us only the confidence that we've done it before, so we are more likely to be able to do it again! One of the most direct paths to the sociological imagination is through writing. Good writing is connected to reading and thinking in magical ways -- we know that the more we do of all three, the better we become at each one.

Working at things we have yet to master is what learning is all about. And, like other skills we have mastered, the better you are at doing something, the easier it seems and the more fun it becomes. You can play with ideas and words; find new ways to combine previously noncombinative concepts; and ultimately convince other people that your ideas are worth listening to.

This handbook is designed to help you understand the expectations, guidelines, and standards for writing sociology. Individual teachers may provide additional criteria for their assignments, but basic information about sociology writing tasks are defined in this handbook. It is a compendium of tutorials, extended handouts, clear instructions, helpful hints and other potentially useful tools for you to use in approaching your assignments. It will not create the magic mentioned above, but it will help clear up the details that we all use as excuses to avoid writing: How do I define my problem? How do I find relevant information about my topic? How many citations (and what kind) do I need? What format should I use? What should I include? How do I present my findings?

So, we encourage you to read and notice what makes texts compelling. Then, write some more. In the process of writing (and re-writing) sociology well, you will improve at thinking sociologically. We can't guarantee that you'll become a good sociologist, but we're sure you'll become a better reader, thinker, and writer for whatever future is yours.

1Contributed by Denise Lach. All comments are welcome: dlach@orst.edu.

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